It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Snoggletog
by NightFuryNinja1999
Summary: It's Hiccup's first Snoggletog as the Chief of Berk, but will he cope under pressure?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

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><p>It was Hiccup's first Snoggletog as Chief; he walked outside his house on the first morning, before anyone else was up, and stared around the village. Quiet and peaceful. Not for long. Soon every person in the village would be running around like a headless chicken; putting up the tree in the centre of the village, decorating their houses, finding presents, wrapping presents etc. And he'd have to organise it all. He heard Toothless land with a soft thump in the snow next to him and nudge him with his head. "Hey, morning bud. You want to go flying, right?" Hiccup turned to his dragon and patted his head. Toothless purred in response and they flew off into the pink and gold sky, where the sun was just rising. Even though he was Chief, he still found time to go flying with his best friend.<p>

They flew high up, right above the clouds, and glided along in the cold, slightly thin air, with the tips of Toothless' wings just brushing the clouds. Hiccup not only did this to spend time with Toothless, but he also often came up here to clear his head. Being Chief was very stressful. The last few days he'd barely been getting any sleep, and his girlfriend Astrid was worrying about him. He kept telling her he was fine, but he wasn't, not really. He was constantly tired, because he kept himself awake all night stressing about what the next day was going to bring. He lay back on Toothless and took in the fresh morning air to calm himself. He also found that talking to Toothless actually helped. Although the dragon couldn't talk, he seemed a good listener. "I don't know, bud, all this Chiefing is really starting to take its toll. What would dad do? He'd tell me to stop being weak and just carry on. But it's hard. I get about two or three hours sleep, four at best. It's hard to work when you're so tired. Maybe I should just tell Astrid. She knows something's up and she will keep going on at me until I tell her. But then she'll tell mum, and then mum will tell Gothi and I will end up on some herbal remedy. Oh well, I guess it's for the best. And I can't even begin to think about Snoggletog..." Toothless listened to his rider and wished he could help. All he could do was purr in a sympathetic way.

"Up here again, are we?" came a voice from behind them. Hiccup raised his head to see Astrid riding her dragon Stormfly alongside him.

"Astrid! You're up early." Hiccup was a little surprised. Oh well, at least he could tell her now.

"So are you."

"Have you been following me every day?" Hiccup wasn't surprised at Astrid at all, but he had to ask.

"No, I've just watched you leave every morning. Until now."

"How long have you been following me?"

"Not long. I caught the part where you said you needed to tell me something. What?"

Hiccup sighed and sat up; he knew that was coming, "Well, you know you keep asking if I'm okay?"

"Yeah? You're not are you? I knew it!"

"No, I'm not. Wait how did you know?"

"Babe, I just know. Tell me. Now."

"Fine. I can't sleep. For the last few days I have been getting two or three hours sleep, four at best. I keep myself awake stressing about the next day. I can't work like this."

Astrid guided Stormfly so she was right next to Toothless, and stepped over their joined wings to join her boyfriend on his dragon. She put her arms around him, put her head on his shoulder and said, "Babe, you should've said something."

"I know. But I didn't want to look weak."

Astrid laughed. "Weak? It doesn't make you look weak at all. If anything, it makes you look the opposite. You had the courage to tell someone. So you're stressing about being Chief?"

"Yeah. It's really hard, Astrid. I don't know how my dad did it."

"Your dad was a great man. But I'm sure for years he was just like you. But he pulled through eventually, didn't he? You will too."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I love you, and I believe in you. I believe you will be the greatest Chief Berk has ever seen. You will be feared across the archipelago."

Hiccup laughed, "I don't know about that."

"You will. I'm sure of it. Now shall we go down and start with the Snoggletog preparations?"

Hiccup smiled, talking to Astrid always helped. He felt better already. "Okay." And they swooped back down to land again.

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><p><strong>I thought I'd do a little Christmas story for you guys! It won't be finished for Christmas day itself, but I will hopefully get it finished by New Year's Eve (in the UK - 31st December). If you have any ideas, please put them in the reviews, I am happy to take them! Remember, nothing M rated, as I only write K through to T rated stories. See you soon! Happy ChristmasSnoggletog!  
><strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

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><p>Toothless landed softly in the snow, Stormfly not far behind. The couple dismounted Toothless and headed towards the Great Hall, where the rest of the village would be waiting.<p>

Sure enough, there they were. They were gathered around a large table in the centre of the Great Hall, awaiting the Chief's orders. As they entered Astrid looked worriedly at her boyfriend. "Are you sure you're alright to do this?"

"Astrid, I'm fine. For now." Hiccup replied, sounding more confident than he felt as he walked over to his people gathered around the table. He took his place at the head of the table, Toothless stood behind him, looking very impressive. And intimidating, obviously. The very loud chatter from the people died down almost straight away.

"Right, people. As you know, Snoggletog is on its way, and we need to make tons of preparations to make sure it's the best yet!" He indicated the left side of the table. "I want you guys to get the wood for the tree and construct it in the centre of the village." Then he indicated the right side of the table, "I want you guys to collect as many shields as possible and give them to Astrid, she will put them up on the tree." he smiled at Astrid. "Right, let's go and get this out of the way so we can move on to the next bit! Go!" he said and the villagers, understanding their tasks, left the Great Hall to start. When they all left, Astrid walked over.

"Babe, if there's anything else I can do..." she started but Hiccup interrupted.

"Astrid, I'm the Chief. I have to set a good example to the people. I. Am. Fine. Now go!" he smiled as he dismissed his girlfriend. When she left, he followed on Toothless, gliding out of the Great Hall doors and into the village.

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><p>Everything seemed to be going according to plan, the tree was taking shape, Astrid had a massive pile of shields next to her, and Stormfly was helping to put them on the tree at a good pace, three or four at a time. But of course, everything had to go wrong. The twins, having been on the right side of the table, had collected their own two shields; and now were flying around on their Zippleback, Barf and Belch, causing trouble. They were making swirls of the green gas in the sky and then igniting them so the explosion followed the trail. The villagers all stood watching in awe.<p>

Hiccup saw something could go very wrong, but just as he was about to get onto Toothless and fly towards them, the explosion got rather close to the tree, and a little tiny flame ignited at the top. It slowly got bigger and began to spread. The villagers gasped in shock and Hiccup sighed in exasperation. "Right, you lot get buckets and put the flames out. Use your dragons to help!" he ordered. Gods above, it was getting tiring just talking. He quickly mounted Toothless and they sprang into the sky, where the twins were hovering, watching the spectacle below.

"You guys! You know fire and wood do not go together!" he said, just managing to get his words out, he was so tired.

"Sorry Chief." they both said simultaneously. "We didn't mean to hit the tree. Though now I wish we had, it looks awesome!" Tuffnut added, looking down at the villagers who were hovering on their dragons, using huge buckets of water to put the flames out. Hiccup shot him a look.

"Okay, okay, we're going..." he said and the Zippleback swooped down to help.

Within seconds the flames were out. The fire had only spread about a quarter of the way down, but those wood planks that had been caught alight were now blackened and crumbling. Hiccup sighed in exasperation _again. _This was not going to plan. "Alright, people, we need to get replacement wood. Ruffnut, Tuffnut, seeing as you were the people who caused this mess, you can take Snotlout and Fishlegs and start gathering more wood from the cove. It's painted and ready, so just bring it here. More people will be on the way soon." he ordered, hovering on Toothless about ten feet in the air. The twins, Snotlout and Fishlegs turned on their dragons and headed towards the cove, muttering curses under their breath; they really didn't want to do this. "The rest of you, I want you to use your dragons and help take the black wood off and throw it away." Hiccup ordered the rest of the people and then Toothless landed on the ground.

He put his head on Toothless' neck. He was so tired, speaking was becoming an enormous amount of effort and he was beginning to feel light-headed. All out of exhaustion. Astrid walked over to him, behind them Gobber was organising the disposal of the blackened, burnt wood.

"Hiccup, are you sure you're alright? You look shattered." she said.

He was completely not alright, but he said, "Just a bit of exhaustion, that's all. I'll just get some extra sleep tonight."

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><p>Sorting the tree took pretty much the rest of the day. When it was eventually finished, Hiccup decided to call it a day. "Right, people, well done today, you coped well in a situation like that," he shot the twins another look, "which wasn't planned. Head home and get some food and some rest. You'll need it." And with that he dismissed the villagers and flew back to his house at the top of the village. He landed outside and his mum, Valka, was not far behind on her four-winged Stormcutter dragon Cloudjumper, having just been for a quick patrol around the island, because her son had seemingly forgotten. "Hiccup..." she started and he turned to her. Valka seemed worried for her son. "You forgot your evening patrol." she said.<p>

"Oh Gods, thanks for reminding me, mum." he said and went to get onto Toothless but Valka stopped him.

"Not so fast. I've already done it." she said and he looked somewhat relieved.

"Thank you mum, I completely forgot!" he said and Valka could see that something was wrong. She put a hand on his face.

"Are you alright, Hiccup? You don't seem yourself. In fact, you haven't seemed yourself for the last few days..." her voice was riddled with concern and Hiccup felt guilty for not telling her before. So he told her what he had to Astrid, and his mum said, "Right, go and get some rest. If you're still like this in the morning, Astrid and I will run the village. You can't work like this."

"But mum, I have to. I have to continue working! It's what dad would do..." Hiccup protested.

"You inherited your father's stubbornness, I'll give you that. Just go and sleep. Now." Valka ordered and they both headed inside the house and to their separate rooms. Hiccup was shattered, but he could only sleep a few hours. Why? The next day. If today was madness, what would tomorrow bring?

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><p><strong>So he's realized something is wrong, but still won't give up. Find out what 'tomorrow' brings in the next chapter, up soon!<br>**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

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><p>After only an hour's sleep, he awoke again with a pounding heart. Oh I forgot to mention; he still had nightmares of the day Stoick died. Not all the time, but when it happened it didn't help with the insomnia. It was so vivid, so real, and always the same; Toothless was advancing on Hiccup, ready to fire a deadly plasma blast. Hiccup backed away slowly, trying to talk Toothless out of his almost hypnotic state, but it didn't work. Then, just as Toothless was about to fire, Stoick jumped in front of his son, protecting him. The plasma blast hit him square in the chest, and he fell lifelessly to the floor. But the worst part was where Hiccup screamed for his father, and his yells were faded out, and repeated over and over again. Often he woke afterwards with a pounding heart and tears running down his face. When he blinked after waking up, more tears streamed down out of those green eyes. It was all his fault. It was his fault his father died. If he had just destroyed the armada without confronting Drago, maybe Stoick would still be alive. He probably would, he was the toughest person Hiccup knew.<p>

He glanced out of the window, the sun was just rising. Great. Now he'd have to lie through his teeth to both his mother and his girlfriend just so he could keep working. He wanted to stay in bed and try and sleep, but that wasn't an option in his opinion. His entire body ached and he literally had no energy to move. Just moving to sit on the edge of the bed used up the tiny sliver of energy he still had, and a whole lot more effort besides. Eventually he psyched himself up to get off the bed and onto Toothless, who took off out of the bedroom window, not even stopping to question his master.

Up in the clouds today was a slightly different story. Instead of talking to Toothless about the stresses of being Chief, he instead was talking to Toothless about the vivid nightmare he'd just had. Little did he know; that Astrid, who had been watching his house through her bedroom window, had just taken off on Stormfly after him. She heard everything.

"You've been having nightmares?" she asked, again flying Stormfly alongside and walking across the wings of the two dragons with skill and balance. Again she sat behind her boyfriend and she hugged him.

Hiccup said nothing, just landed Toothless on the nearest piece of land, got off him with immense effort and sat on the floor. "Yes. Not every day, but when I do, they're so real, Astrid, it's like I'm back there..." his voice was very quiet. He wanted to cry, but he didn't even have the energy to do that.

Astrid's eyes welled up. She hated seeing him like this. She sat down beside him and gave him a massive hug. "Hey, it's alright. It was just a dream." she said soothingly.

He hugged her back with the feeling of someone so emotionally damaged they can't do much else. "I know. But every time I have them, I wake up with a pounding heart and tears running down my face." His voice was even more quiet.

"Oh babe, it must be so horrible for you." Was all Astrid could say to that.

"It is. The worst part is when my screams for my father fade out and repeat over and over..."

"I know, I know." This was the most comforting Astrid had ever been to anyone.

"I wake up and think it was all my fault..."

Astrid pulled herself away and looked right at him. "Oh come on, you know that's not true. There's nothing you could've done to stop it."

"Yes there was. If I hadn't confronted Drago and just helped you guys out, my dad would still be alive."

"No. You thought you could change his mind. You did what you thought was right."

"It was a stupid thing to think. Men who kill without reason cannot be reasoned with."

"You're an optimist. You like to think the best of everyone and that everyone is capable of great and good things. Except yourself."

He looked at her, his green eyes sparkling with tears that he didn't have the energy to release. "Am I cut out for this, Astrid?" his voice was a whisper now.

"Of course you are. It's in your blood. And I know, deep down, that you will be the greatest Chief, and that your father will be watching from Valhalla and he will be immensely proud of what you have achieved." Astrid's voice was choked. She then placed a hand on her heart and then placed it on his. The tears that had been welling up in both of their eyes finally released themselves and soon they were both crying silently, hugging each other for comfort.

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><p>After a while they decided to fly back, the tears having dried up. On the way back Astrid hugged him tight and didn't let go. She felt for him, she really did. She hated seeing him so emotionally damaged and scarred. She hated not seeing the man she fell in love with, who was funny, with his dry, sarcastic sense of humour. "Hiccup, you're not working today." she finally said firmly.<p>

"Yes I am, Astrid." Was his near silent reply.

"No, you're not, and that's an order." Astrid was putting her foot down.

At this point Hiccup would have probably made some funny, maybe slightly sarky comment about the fact they weren't married yet and so she couldn't give orders. But instead he said, his voice choked, "Astrid, I have to." The look on his face really struck a chord with Astrid. It was mostly his eyes. They were sparkling with tears again.

"Okay, babe, whatever you want." she relented quietly and put her head back on it's resting place between his shoulder blades.

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><p>They landed back on the island, right in front of the Great Hall. Before entering the doors Hiccup had to make sure he was no longer crying, and when he had, he stood up straight and strode into the hall the way his father used to. Today's orders were to decorate the houses. He told the people as much, in his loudest, most Chiefly voice, and when they left the Great Hall, he sank back into Toothless' saddle, drained of all energy. "Are you sure you can do this, babe?" Astrid asked again.<p>

"Yes, Astrid. I'll stay on Toothless at all times, right bud?" he said and Toothless purred in response, then the dragon looked at Astrid as if to say 'I'll make sure he does.'

Astrid looked very concerned; then she left the Great Hall. Hiccup put his head on Toothless' neck again and said nothing. Just breathed in and out deeply; then flew out of the great doors and into the village again.

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><p>He stayed true to his word, staying on the back of Toothless and flying around the village helping people out, but then something pretty bad happened. Or two things. The first was an explosion from a house nearby. He whipped his head round, with the little energy he had gained, to see the twins running from the house with their arms full of explosive Gronckle eggs. Toothless flew right towards them without any orders whatsoever and stopped them in their tracks. They looked guilty as soon as they saw the Chief. "How many houses have you planted these in?" he demanded.<p>

"Umm, was it four or five, I can't remember..." Ruffnut tried to remember, but her brother finished for her. "Five." he said firmly.

"Five?!" Hiccup was exasperated again. He had enough issues in his life without these two playing practical jokes on people. As if on cue, four more houses exploded. He sighed very loudly in exasperation and asked, "Where did you get those from anyway?"

"Easy. The dragon breeding island. Some of them were there early." Tuffnut said, seeming proud of himself that he actually remembered.

Hiccup realised what this meant and said, "Oh no..." and as if they heard, all of the dragons in the village helping people out ditched their riders, who fell hard to the floor, and flew off in the direction of the island where they went to breed. The only dragon who didn't leave was Toothless, for obvious reasons. He was the last of his kind, there was no point. "Oh no, no no..." Hiccup muttered under his breath and he watched all the dragons leave. The villagers all turned to look at him and started asking so many questions at once and he couldn't keep up and everything accumulated in his mind at once and in the end he collapsed, off of Toothless and into the snow below...

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><p><strong>So there we go, the exhaustion has finally taken it's most serious toll. I almost cried writing this chapter, totes emosh! Let me know what you think in the reviews, and next chapter will be up very soon!<br>**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

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><p>Toothless dropped like a stone into the snow, next to his master, the only person he obeyed. The dragon picked himself up and shook the snow out of his wings and off of his face. Panic raged around him, the villagers were all gathered around the collapsed Chief in the snow. Then there was a very loud yell.<p>

"HICCUP!" Astrid screamed and she ran towards the crowd, pushing her way through. She sank to her knees beside him. "Babe, can you hear me?" she said before breaking down into tears. She panicked and immediately thought the worst when he didn't reply. She turned to the twins, who she knew had been planting Gronckle eggs in the houses. This was what clearly had caused him to collapse. "LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE! YOU'VE KILLED HIM!" the twins exchanged confused faces then someone else came onto the scene.

Cloudjumper landed just behind the crowd and Valka fought her way through to see what was going on. When she saw her son lying flat on his back in the snow next to his very concerned looking dragon and utterly distraught girlfriend, she panicked as well. "Hiccup?" she said quietly and put a hand to his face. Then she felt for a pulse. It was there, but it was weaker than it should've been. She turned to Astrid. "He's not dead, Astrid. He's simply unconscious."

Astrid broke into tears again, this time with relief, and she laid her head on her boyfriend's chest, listening to his heartbeat. "Oh thank the Gods!" she could just be heard saying through her sobs.

"We need to get him to Gothi right away." Valka seemed very calm on the surface, although inside she was panicking like crazy. She turned to Gobber, who had been Stoick's 'right hook' man and was also Hiccup's mentor. Valka didn't have to say anything to him; he just gently prised Astrid off of Hiccup's chest and picked him up. Then, still without a word, he got onto his dragon Grump and he flew off towards Gothi's house on the mountain. Valka and Astrid respectively jumped onto Cloudjumper and Stormfly, and followed. Before she left Valka stood on Cloudjumper's back, hovering in the air. "Right, people, find something useful to do and try not to worry about the Chief!" before flying away.

Toothless tried to fly after them, but he soon realized his tail was closed so he couldn't. Then someone managed to put their foot into the stirrup that opened and closed the tail fin, opened the tail and pulled their foot out again. It was Fishlegs, of all people. "There you go, Toothless. Go and find your master." he said softly, he was clearly worried for Hiccup. They all were.

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><p>When Hiccup slowly opened his eyes and lifted his head, which felt as if it weighed a thousand tons and was throbbing with intense pain, he immediately did <em>not<em> recognize where he was. Everything was white and glowing slightly. Then something dawned on him. Was this where you go before you're admitted to Valhalla? Was he dead?

Then he looked and sat up. He heard the sound of metal on whatever the floor was as he dragged his prosthetic leg backwards so he could sit up. He was still in his flight suit. Then he realized something. Sitting in front of him was his father, still wearing the clothes he had been when he was killed. Hiccup was stunned. "Dad?"

"Son." He even sounded the same.

"Dad, where am I?"

"Your imagination." Stoick replied simply.

"Well, my imagination's very blank, isn't it?" although he was in pain and confused, Hiccup still had to crack a joke.

Stoick smiled. "This is the very small part of your imagination that _is _blank."

Then Hiccup had to ask the all-important question. "So I'm not dead?"

"No. You're not dead. I am, however." Was his father's deadpan reply.

"So why are you here? And what happened to me?" Hiccup had endless questions for his dad.

"One; I have been watching over you since the moment I entered Valhalla, and I thought it was time we had a little chat. Two; you collapsed out of exhaustion. Which is what I am here to talk to you about."

"Oh Thor..." Hiccup muttered under his breath.

"What was that?" Stoick demanded.

"Nothing. Dad." Hiccup was quick to reply.

Stoick looked suspicious for a moment then said, "I know you've been finding being Chief rather stressful..."

"Understatement of the century." Hiccup interrupted.

"Don't interrupt me! I might be dead, but I am still your father!"

"Sorry dad. Carry on."

"As I was saying, I know you've been finding being Chief rather stressful, and that you keep yourself awake stressing about it. Talk to me, son."

"It's just so hard, dad. One moment I'm having a nice relaxing time flying with Toothless, the next I have to deal with family disputes, rogue dragons, burning houses, the new Dragon Academy students, and then there's the twins and Snotlout..." Hiccup counted off all the Chiefly duties on his fingers. "Oh yeah, and Snoggletog. How could I possibly forget? I constantly worry about what the next day will bring when I'm lying in bed at night."

"Son, I know what you're going through. I was the same. Every single night I'd get about two hours sleep. Your mother was really worried about me."

"Sounds familiar." Hiccup said. "Astrid's constantly checking up on me, seeing if I'm okay to carry on, and I keep lying to her, dad, I hate it."

"Yep. I was exactly the same with your mother. You know what? I collapsed as well. I don't remember it, but that's how your mother described it. I fell from a roof I was fixing and onto the floor. Apparently. I woke up in Gothi's house three days later and after that I was given a very special remedy that relaxes both your mind and your body, and helps you sleep. I used it for about a year after that, and in the end I learned to not worry about the next day, I'd just have to deal with it when it came."

"You never said..."

"I never had the chance. Your mother was the only person that knew I was taking the medicine. Before that, I was the same as you. Stubborn as a yak, and wouldn't stop working. Now I know that was the wrong thing to do, it would only get worse."

"But you said a Chief's first duty is to his people..."

"Not when you're so exhausted you can barely move, Hiccup!"

"Okay, okay. Do you think the same will happen to me? About the medicine, I mean?" Hiccup had yet more questions for his father.

"Yes. You're probably in Gothi's house right now, surrounded by Toothless, your mother and Astrid."

Hiccup looked very weirded out for a minute, then realised that while his conscience was here, his body was technically still on Berk. "Dad, there's something else..."

"I know. The nightmares, right?" Stoick already knew what was coming.

"Yeah. They're not every night, but it feels as if I'm back on that battlefield a year ago..."

"I know, son. Please don't blame yourself for my death. It was my choice to protect you. It's what any father would've done."

"But if I hadn't confronted Drago..."

"It wouldn't have happened. Okay, well, you did confront him, so don't dwell on what you could've done instead. You thought it was the right thing to do and that you could change his mind."

"A stupid thing to think." Hiccup repeated what he had said to Astrid. "Men who kill without reason..."

"Cannot be reasoned with. And you know that now. My death was not, I repeat NOT your fault. Do you understand me?"

Hiccup didn't have a choice but to agree. "Yes, dad."

"Good. And as for the nightmares, the medicine will help with that. I also can't quite believe you made Astrid cry. Twice." Stoick smiled at his son.

Hiccup had to see the funny side. "I know! Wait, twice?"

"When you collapsed?"

"Oh yeah, course. When I'm in a bad place emotionally, it makes Astrid cry but she's also my rock. She said you'd be proud of me."

"And I am. Immensely proud. I can't even put it into words. And Astrid is right. You _will_ be feared across the archipelago."

"I'm still not sure about that..."

"Hiccup, you ride a Night Fury, and not just any Night Fury. The Alpha dragon. Not to mention the fact you carry a blade that sets itself on fire and sprays explosive Zippleback gas!"

"Alright, point taken." Just as Hiccup said this his vision started blurring. "What's going on?" he asked his dad.

"You're coming to. Son, you will be a great Chief. I believe in you..." Were the last words Stoick said to his son, and the next second, Hiccup's eyes fluttered open to see Toothless, Astrid and Valka gathered around him. Although he only saw Astrid's face briefly because the next thing she did was kiss him in sheer relief.

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><p><strong>So there we go! I know the whole 'conversation with your dead father in your imagination' thing may have been a little cliche but still, I put it in. Let me know what you think in the reviews!<br>**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

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><p>He kissed her back, and it seemed to last an eternity. He raised his head and put a hand on the back of her neck. When she pulled away she put her forehead to his. He could see she was crying. So he decided to crack a joke. "What a nice way to wake up from a coma." With his trademark lopsided smile.<p>

Astrid smiled, but it faded. "Never do that again! You scared me to death..." she said and then dissolved into tears. She was knelt on the floor, but her head fell onto his chest again, listening to his heartbeat through his tunic. He kissed the top of her head and said, "I'm sorry, Astrid." In a very soft voice. She looked up.

"You'd better be! You were out for two days and I never really left your bedside."

"Two days?!" Hiccup was in shock, it had felt like two _hours_ to him, while he was having his conversation with Stoick.

"Yes, two days. I had to run the village." Came a voice from behind them. It was Valka. She had clearly been waiting for the young couple to finish so she could speak.

"Mum, I am forever in your debt." he said, he was genuinely grateful.

"No, you're not. You don't owe me anything." his mum said simply, smiling. "Anyway, why in Thor's name did you carry on working?"

"I thought it was the best thing. Dad always said that a Chief's first duty was to his people."

"Surely not when the Chief can barely move?" Astrid asked.

"No, not when the Chief can barely move. I learnt that."

"Learnt that from what?" Astrid and Valka were confused.

"Oh, right. While I was out, the weirdest thing happened. I opened my eyes only to find I was in my imagination, and dad was in front of me."

"I've heard of things like that happening. Only people that died what we call a 'Viking death' can do that. Your father is obviously one of them." Valka explained. "What did he say to you?" she then asked.

So Hiccup explained what his father had told him.

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><p>After he'd finished explaining, they heard footsteps and a staff, which could only be Gothi. She made her way into the Chief's house, and in her other hand she was holding a bowl of something. She pushed her way past Valka and Astrid, who were a little miffed, but she was going to be helping Hiccup, so it was okay. Hiccup sat up on the bed, and she gave him this bowl. This was obviously the medicine his father had been on about. The smell emanating from the bowl was amazing. It was obviously a herbal concoction, and immediately he relaxed. Valka translated for Gothi, as she was one of three people in the village who could. "She says have this by your bedside at night, it will calm you and help with the nightmares."<p>

Hiccup nodded understandingly. "Thank you." he said and Gothi left.

Astrid put her face over the bowl and inhaled. "Oh my Gods, that smells amazing." she stated then motioned to Valka. She did the same. "It does. Just make sure you use it, Hiccup, and don't go all like your father, 'I don't need this, I'm a Chief'." Astrid laughed, that wasn't like Hiccup at all.

"You really think I'll do that?" Hiccup was laughing too.

"No." Valka smiled and then got up. "Well, seeing as Gothi has also prescribed two more days bed rest, I have a village to run. Astrid, don't let him leave." And with that she walked out of the bedroom door, down the stairs and out of the front door.

"I'm stuck in bed for two days?" Hiccup was a little miffed.

"Yep. Well, look on the bright side; at least you don't have to deal with the twins." Astrid answered, pulling a chair to his bedside.

"There is that. Oh yeah, did the houses get fixed?" he suddenly remembered.

"Yes, they did. No need to worry."

"Oh thank the Gods. But if I can't leave my bed I can't go flying either..." he was rather annoyed about that. As if on cue, Toothless jumped in through the window and landed next to the bed. How he jumped that high was a mystery, but Hiccup put his hand out and Toothless put his nose against it. "Hey there, buddy." he said. "Sorry, we can't go flying for the next two days, bud." Toothless purred in a disappointed way but he was glad to see his rider alive. "But Astrid will fly you, right, milady?" Hiccup said and turned to Astrid.

"Yeah, why not?" she said and walked round to Toothless. "You up for that, Toothless?" she asked the dragon. Toothless nodded and turned round, inviting Astrid onto his back. "What, now?" she said and Toothless, although he was the Alpha, jumped up and down like an infant dragon. He pointed his tail at his saddle, and Astrid got into it. The stirrup for the prosthetic had now been adjusted so she could fit her foot into it. She looked at Hiccup for advice. "You know how to fly him, Astrid." he said.

"Yeah well maybe I've forgot-" she was cut off as Toothless, too impatient to wait, leapt out of the window, and Astrid opened the tail fin and they glided off into the distance. Hiccup watched them from his window, wishing it was him flying Toothless but at the same time happy for two reasons. One was that Astrid could bond with Toothless, and the other was that he didn't have to cope with organizing Snoggletog for two whole days. He got back into his bed, deciding to catch up on some much-needed sleep.

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><p><strong>Yay! So the father-son moment (thank you TigerLily the Wild for calling it that) worked and he's getting better. This is the penultimate chapter, and please review!<br>**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

**Just as a warning, this is a very, very fluffy final chapter! HICCSTRID FOR THE WIN!  
><strong>

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><p>When the Chief was back in charge, the next three days of organizing went very smoothly. Mostly because he was now not going to collapse at any minute. The medicine worked its magic, and even the nightmares seemed to have stopped. All in all, it was a good three days for the Chief and an even better three days for Astrid, because she didn't have to worry about her boyfriend.<p>

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><p>When Snoggletog finally descended upon the village, it was halfway to being knee-deep in snow, and the village looked spectacular. After another amazing night's sleep, Hiccup awoke fairly early on that morning, the sun had just risen, and it cast its glow over the village, the snow sparkling as a result. He got up, put his flight suit on over the tunic and trousers he wore to sleep, and stared of his window, at his village. The last three days had been easy going thanks to the medicine, and they were the best days he'd had since he became Chief.<p>

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><p>Then another person entered the room. It was Astrid, having run over to his house early. "Happy Snoggletog." she said and, seeing him standing by his window, walked over to him and put her arms round him. He started to turn round so she let go and then he picked her up in a wedding carry. She squealed as he did so. "Happy Snoggletog to you too, milady." he said and kissed her.<p>

"Have you got me anything?" she asked him when they broke away.

"As a matter of fact, I have." he replied, then put her down and picked something up from underneath the bed. It was something he'd managed to make after many late nights at the forge, well before any of the sleep issues happened. It was in a little wooden box he'd also constructed himself. He handed it to Astrid and she opened the lid. Inside on a black fabric pillow, was the most beautiful necklace she'd ever seen. It was made of silver chain links and the pendant was a small-ish heart shape with a clasp on it. The heart was engraved with 'Open me' in very fancy curly handwriting and little swirl decorations in the 'corners'. Astrid looked up at him and said, "Babe, this is gorgeous! Did you make it yourself?"

"Yes. Now open it, for Thor's sake." he said with a smile and she did so. Inside the heart was a message written in Hiccup's familiar handwriting. It read:

'Astrid,

Whether we're together, or apart, I want you to wear this necklace with the knowledge that I will always love you.

All my love forever,

Hiccup xx'

Astrid's eyes welled up as she read the message, then when she looked up at her boyfriend the tears of happiness released themselves and she said, "Oh my Gods, that's beautiful!" She closed the locket carefully, then, still holding the necklace, threw her arms round him and rested her head on his shoulder.

When she'd calmed down a bit she raised her head and said, "You went into all that trouble..."

"It's worth every broken nail and bleeding finger to see you happy, milady." Was his reply. Astrid smiled and put her head back on his shoulder. "So, you like it then?" he asked.

"Babe, I love it. It's the most beautiful message and I will treasure it till I die." she said.

"Good, good. It's all true, by the way. Even when I can no longer sweep you off your feet," as he said this he picked her up again, "and we're both seventy odd, I will still love you."

"Oh Gods, don't make me cry again..." Astrid said; then she composed herself and put her arms loosely round his neck. "You know what, babe? You know how people fall in love and then it generally fades after a while?"

"Yes?"

"That's not the case with me. Every time I see you I fall in love with you all over again. Every single day."

"That sounds familiar." he put her down and put his forehead against hers, wrapping his arms round her. "You're the most beautiful woman in the world and I couldn't possibly wish for a better girlfriend. You've been my rock over the last week, and for that I am forever in your debt."

"Aw, babe, that's so sweet. And you don't owe me a thing. But I feel guilty now, because I haven't got you a present and you went into all that trouble for me..." she started but Hiccup put a finger to her lips and silenced her.

"Astrid, I don't want a present in return. If I've got you, that's all I need."

"That's what I thought you'd say, but still..." and she was silenced again.

"Ssssh." he said and then kissed her again, but it was a longer, sweeter kiss. When they broke away Astrid gazed into those forest green eyes that sparkled every other shade of green under the sun. It was good to have him back for Snoggletog.

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><p><strong>I told you: fluff central. But I love it. And see if you can spot where Ed Sheeran's song Thinking Out Loud is used! I do not own the song.<br>**

**There we are, that's this story complete. Thank you so much for all your support for this story, I hope you all enjoyed it! And don't forget to review!**


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